Notre Dame celebrates its 850th anniversary this year. What better time to
explore the French capital's medieval past, says Natasha Edwards.

Jean-Marie, Maurice, Benoît-Joseph, Etienne, Marcel, Denis, Anne-Geneviève, Gabriel and Marie have arrived in Paris. The nine new bells are preparing to ring in the 850th anniversary of Notre Dame Cathedral, in commemoration of the laying of the foundation stone in 1163 by Bishop Maurice de Sully. They are set to ring for the first time on March 23, having been cast in Normandy and Holland to replace originals melted down after the French Revolution.

If you feel that the classicism of grand siècle mansions, Colbert's squares and Haussmann's boulevards are just too pristine, too rational, too Cartesian, then now is a good time to discover another facet of the city; to explore the Paris of the 12th to 16th centuries.

There are plenty of remnants of medieval Paris still to be seen: traces of scholars, monks and knights in vaulted cellars, fragments of castles and palaces, as well as Gothic churches reflecting the style that, unlike imported classicism, was "an art born in our country" – the words of Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, an ardent Gothic revivalist and the man who restored the rundown cathedral in 1845.

Notre Dame, is celebrating its anniversary with recitals on the newly restored Great Organ, installed in 1401. Organists from around the world give free organ recitals every Saturday at 8pm, building up for World Organ Day on May 6 and 850 organ concerts worldwide.

Notre Dame was not France's first Gothic cathedral but it showcased elements of Gothic architecture that would appear elsewhere, with its twin towers, massive rose windows, doorways sculpted with saints and angels, and gallery of kings on the west front.

For an insight into the cathedral's construction, a close-up of the stonework and sometimes even the sight of stonemasons at work – as well as a superb view – you have to climb the towers (notre-dame-de-paris.monuments-nationaux.fr).The top of the south belfry is closed until August 26, but you can ascend the steep spiral staircase in the north tower (be prepared to queue) and cross the west front gallery to come eye to eye with gargoyles galore, bringing to mind Quasimodo's view of Paris, as played by Charles Laughton in the 1939 film version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Far below, in the Crypte Archéologique (crypte.paris.fr), you can inspect the slightly unfathomable archaeological jumble of foundations, pipes, cellars, old quaysides, medieval shops and chapels, piled up over centuries, giving an idea of the island's medieval clutter.

Île de la Cité has two more Gothic treasures. The Sainte Chapelle (sainte-chapelle.monuments-nationaux.fr; take ID as the chapel is within the law courts) is a High Gothic masterpiece, built in record speed for Louis IX between 1242 and 1248 to house the Crown of Thorns and other relics.

The double-decker chapel was designed to accommodate royal servants in the star-painted section below, royalty and clergy above. Whereas Notre Dame is solid and glowering, the Sainte Chapelle is spindly and colourful, even the stone being tinted by the reflections of the stained glass: hundreds of intense tiny scenes from the Old Testament and Crucifixion.

A couple of doors up is the Conciergerie (conciergerie.monuments-nationaux.fr; buy a combined ticket for the two), which most visitors miss. This is a pity, because the two massive vaulted halls, the last remnants of the Capetian kings' palace before it became engulfed by the law courts, provide an impressive glimpse of medieval power. The Conciergerie was used as a prison during the French Revolution; several cells have been recreated and exhibits include massive keys, busts of Robespierre, and a guillotine blade hanging on the wall.

However, it is the Latin Quarter, the historic university quarter on the Left Bank, that has best kept its atmosphere of medieval Paris. Either side of rue St Jacques, for example, are two of Paris's finest Gothic churches: the tiny early Gothic St Julien le Pauvre, where carved capitals now meet Mennonite icons, and the Eglise St-Séverin, the original Left Bank parish church, which was rebuilt in the 15th century, with particularly extravagant gargoyles leering from all the spouts. Its five-nave interior has a striking mix of historic and modern stained glass and a forest of columns, where all the vaulting seems to flow from a celebrated spiral palm tree column in the ambulatory.

It takes a bit of imagination to picture nearby Place Maubert, now used for a food market, as a place of open-air philosophy lectures, and even public executions, but a trace of the original university remains at the Collège des Bernardins (collegedesbernardins.fr), a 13th-century Cistercian theological college. After periods as a warehouse and firemen's barracks, the long, vaulted refectory has been beautifully restored for art exhibitions and has a café.

A sense of Paris's grand medieval past can also be found at the Musée National du Moyen-Age (musee-moyenage.fr) – known as Cluny – where the 15th-century Gothic town house of the abbots of Cluny provides a perfect setting for medieval art. Many come to see the Lady and the Unicorn tapestry cycle, with its gently smiling lion and unicorn, the millefleurs background full of birds, rabbits and flowers, and mysterious allegory of the senses.

The rest of the collection is also worthwhile. Carved capitals, alabasters and altarpieces, Limoges enamel caskets and reliquaries are mixed with the appeal of the everyday – the fragile remains of a pair of shoes, games, combs, even a watering can.

There is also part of Notre Dame here: the heads of the kings of Judah from the west front, knocked down during the French Revolution, when they were thought to depict kings of France (they were rediscovered during the construction of a car park in the Seventies). The heads are now displayed amid the remains of the first-century Thermes de Cluny Roman baths.

Outside, the medieval garden is not a historic re-creation but a modern interpretation inspired by the museum collection, using plants found in medieval writings and illuminations, with a chivalric playground, flower meadow, celestial and courtly love garden, and kitchen and medicinal gardens.

North of the Halles is another relic of medieval Paris. The Tour Jean Sans Peur (tourjeansanspeur.com) was a turret built in 1409-11 as part of the once imposing palace of Jean the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy. The Duke plotted against the king and allied with Henry V in the Hundred Years War before coming to a sticky end. The tower has an intricately carved spiral staircase, a series of chambers, the oldest lavatories in Paris and an exhibition about medieval cuisine (until April 3).

Henry V ended up imprisoned in the Château de Vincennes on the eastern edge of the city. The fortress, which features as one of the months in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry illuminations, is still surprisingly impressive, with its ring of turrets, fancy gatehouse and own Sainte Chapelle. The centrepiece is the Donjon which, at over 150ft, is the tallest keep in France, with 10ft-thick walls, sculpted capitals and a series of rooms and tiny antechambers.

You could end your tour where Gothic began, at the Basilique St-Denis. Here Abbot Suger, powerful regent and counsellor to Louis VI and Louis VII, used pointed arches and ribbed vaulting for the first time in the 1130s. The nave makes a wonderful setting for concerts in the Festival St-Denis in June. The ambulatory is a tour through French sculpture, its tombs ranging from medieval gisants to towering Renaissance monuments; a royal necropolis for nearly all the French kings and a host of queens, princes and princesses from the 10th century to 1789.

What to avoid

Watch the atmospheric 1939 version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame to get you in the mood but don't use it as a reference source: the film was shot on location in California.

To avoid being spooked by the menacing Gothic gargoyles, remember that their primary function was to direct rain water off cathedral roofs.

Notre Dame is said to be haunted by a locksmith commissioned to make locks for the cathedral. He asked the devil for help and died a few days later.

GETTING THERE

Eurostar (08705 186186; eurostar.com) runs from London St Pancras International to Gare du Nord in central Paris in as little as two hours and 15 minutes. Fares vary considerably, from non-refundable, non-exchangeable returns at £69 to £309 for semi-flexible standard-class tickets. It’s possible to book connecting tickets from stations all over the UK.

The most reliable and inexpensive route into town is by RER line B (€9/£7.80). Count on at least €60/£52 for a taxi. Paris Airport Shuttle (paris-airport-shuttle.com), Paris Shuttle (parishuttle.com) and Airport Connection (airport-connection.com) run minibus services between the airport and hotels (about €25/£22), while the Roissybus (€10/£9) runs between the airport and Opéra.

If you’re planning to return by bus, taxi or minibus, leave plenty of time or it can be a nerve-racking experience in heavy traffic.

THE INSIDE TRACK

It’s easy to walk from Notre Dame to the Latin Quarter but the RATP (ratp.fr) runs 14 Métro lines, RER suburban expresses, buses and tramway. Between 12.30am and 6.30am Noctilien night buses operate from five hubs around the city.

If you’re brave, you can also try Vélib (velib.paris.fr), with more than 20,000 bikes and some 1,500 stations. One-day (€1/86p) or seven-day (€5/£4.31) subscriptions can be taken out on the spot with a credit card. The first 30 minutes of each journey are free, then it’s €1 for the next 30 minutes.

Taxis can be hailed in the street or at ranks, but they are often in short supply. A white light on the roof indicates that the taxi is free. A new, more visible, system is being introduced, with a green light when the taxi is free and red light when it is taken. G7 Taxis switchboard (in English): 0033 1 427 6699.

Just south of Notre Dame, Curio Parlor (16 rue des Bernardins; curioparlor.com) has recently transformed Paris’s cocktail scene. Inside, it seems to be almost as focused on taxidermy as on cocktails, but is surprisingly cosy despite the stuffed animals.

THE BEST HOTELS

Familia Hôtel £

Well located for the Latin Quarter, St-Germain-des-Prés and Notre Dame or across the river, via Île St-Louis, to the Marais and Bastille. In a classic Haussmann-style 1860s building, with a golden stone facade and wrought-iron balconies, the Familia is not for those after cutting-edge design, but has the cosy charm of a hotel run by the same family for several generations (0033 1 4354 5527; familiahotel.com; doubles from €102/£88 ).

Hôtel Le Notre Dame ££

Provides the best views of Notre Dame from the Latin Quarter riverside. The style is more baroque than medieval, given that it was decorated by Christian Lacroix with his characteristic gift for colour and pattern (4354 2043; hotelnotredameparis.com; doubles from €200/£173).

Relais Christine £££

Has the elegant calm of a classical mansion in St-Germain-des-Prés. It also conceals the 13th-century vaulted cellars of the former Abbaye des Grands Augustins, now the breakfast room and spa (4051 6080; relais-christine.com; doubles from €307/ £265).

THE BEST RESTAURANTS

The restaurants below are all convenient if you are Gothic sightseeing at Notre Dame and in the Latin Quarter.

Le Pré Verre £

Le Pré Verre may not have much in the way of décor but it is still packed every day, drawing in Latin Quarter academics with its bargain lunch menu, and a more international set in the evening. It offers bistro cooking with a cosmopolitan spin, with dishes such as glazed pork with wood-smoked potato purée or the parsley ice cream that accompanies strawberries (8 rue Thénard; 4354 5947; lepreverre.com; lunch menu €14/£12).

Mon Vieil Ami ££

A sleek, chic, gourmet bistro on the Île St Louis. The emphasis here is on revisited French regional cooking with long-simmered dishes and lots of vegetables. Tightly packed tables and one high communal table ensure a lively atmosphere (69 rue St Louis en l’Île; 4046 0135; mon-vieil-ami.com; two courses from €33/£27).

Agapé Substance £££

Opening at the end of 2011, this tiny, white, minimalist restaurant quickly got foodie Parisians talking. The menu announces some of the seasonal ingredients that might be featured – on a recent visit I made these included sea bream, scallops, sea urchin, asparagus, swiss chard abd pigeon – before a stream of so many tiny surprise dishes that you quickly lose count, served at a long communal table (66 rue Mazarine; 4329 3383; agapesubstance.com; lunch from €65/£56, dinner €99/£85).